The blaring of the damn alarm clock roused her out of her slumber. She rolled over, smacking the top of the blasted device in hopes that she'd manage to hit the off button. The room fell silent and she groaned loudly at the pain that pounded in her head. Stupid hangover. Stupid alcohol. She squeezed her eyes shut, rubbing at them with the heels of her hands. She blindly reached back over, feeling around on her night stand for the bottle of water she had placed there last night. Her hand slapped at something, which was loudly followed by a sloshing, thunking sound, as the bottle hit the hardwood floor.
"Shit," Stephanie exclaimed. She opened her eyes, spying the bottle as it was joyously rolling under the bed. She inched her way towards the edge of the bed, her legs slipping out from beneath the covers and she eased them gently down until the touched the floor. She pushed herself into an upright position and rose up off the bed. Her world was spinning and she squinted her eyes again, the sun and the tilting creating more of a hammering sensation in her head. With her eyes still half closed, she walked out of her room and down the hallway into her kitchen. She made her way straight to the coffee pot. She carefully measured out the grounds and filled the machine with water, flicking on the switch to start the percolating. She reached up into the cupboard and grabbed the bottle of Tylenol and her favorite coffee mug. She popped off the cap off the medicine bottle and extracted two small pills, setting them on the counter next to the mug. She leaned forward and pulled her fridge door open, scanning the contents and realizing that she had nothing of substance to eat stored on its shelves. She shut the door and leaned up against the the counter, glancing down the hallway as she heard padded steps approaching her.
"Morning sleepy," She grinned at her obviously hungover friend.
Adrienne reached the kitchen, dropping to her knees on the carpet, flopping down onto her back, arms and legs outstretched. "Please don't shout at me and why is it so fucking bright in here?"
Stephanie laughed, opening up the pill bottle once again. Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge she bent down over her friend, "Here, take these and what do you say to a greasy breakfast down the street?"
"Oh yes, please," Adrienne took the Tylenol and water that was offered.
"Here's a cup of coffee," Stephanie poured the black liquid into the mug sitting on the counter, "I'm going to go and get dressed. You know what's weird?"
Adrienne took a long slow sip of the hot coffee, "What?"
Stephanie stuck her head out of her bedroom doorway, "I had the most realistic dream about Matthew last night. I dreamed that he called me and left a message wanting me to call him back, so I did, and we had a good conversation. He let me explain my side and then he said that we could, in a sense, start over. Crazy right?"
"You were super drunk, it was probably an alcohol induced fantasy. You want him to call you so you dreamt that he did. Now hurry and get dressed because I'm starving. Also, I feel like I'm going to vomit. How is that even possible?" Adrienne groaned slightly as Stephanie just giggled at her.
"Wait," Stephanie, having just emerged from her room carrying her purse, dug through it frantically, "Where is my phone?"
Adrienne burped, covering her mouth. "Maybe it fell out," She mumbled through her fingers.
Stephanie held up her index finger, "Hold that thought, let me go and look." She ducked back into her bedroom, reappearing seconds later with the small device clenched in her hand. She pressed one of the buttons on the side, illuminating the screen. "What the hell?"
Adrienne leaned up against her friend, peering over her shoulder, "Let me see."
Stephanie held the phone so it was visible to the prying set of eyes, "Umm, apparently I wasn't dreaming or at least I didn't dream the entire thing." Stephanie swiped at the screen, the text message app popped up for her to read. "It's from Matthew...He says that he hopes that I got some sleep last night, that he's sorry for calling me so late, and that he hopes my hangover isn't too much of a bitch this morning. He also goes on to say that he looks forward to our future conversations. Adrienne, how drunk was I last night?"
Adrienne giggled and hiccuped at the same time, "We were both pretty fucking hammered and from the look on your face, I'm guessing you don't remember anything from this supposed phone call."
Stephanie just stared at her phone, her eyes blinking rapidly, trying to remember what had been said between her and Matthew. Taking a chance, her fingers begin to fly over the touch screen keyboard...
Stephanie: So the hangover isn't as bad as I thought it would be, so yeah...bonus and there is no need for an apology, I'm just glad that you called. Maybe next time, we can chat when I'm not swimming in liquor. Now headed out to fill my stomach with food that I'm fairly certain is bad for me. :)
She pressed the send button, her heart pounding in her chest. She turned and looked at her friend, slumped over the arm of the couch. She laughed and reached for her hand, "Come on, let's go and get that greasy food now."
Stephanie's eyes kept glancing down at her phone. It sat on the table next to her plate of pancakes and eggs and as she munched her way through the delectable treats, she wondered if he'd even bother to text her back.
"Stop it," Adrienne reached over and slapped at Stephanie's plate with her spoon, the noise bringing her friend back into reality. "If he wants to text you back he will, staring at your phone isn't going to make him do it."
Stephanie rolled her eyes as she continued to shovel food into her mouth. "I know," She mumbled through a mouth full.
Adrienne set her silverware down, she looked across the booth at her hopeful friend. "Steph, what are you hoping is going to come of this?"
Stephanie stopped chewing and looked up, meeting her friends eyes, "I want my best friend back."
"That's it? And don't lie to me," Adrienne sent her a stern glare.
"Of course it isn't all but it's what I'm most hopeful for. I miss him Adrienne. I miss everything about him. The way he used to make me laugh, over the silliest things. When we were younger, probably 12 and 14, maybe even younger than that, he had this little magic act and I was his assistant. We'd perform at birthday parties and such. I even had the little sparkly leotard that you see professional assistants wear. He wore a tophat for goodness sake, but it was some of the best times that we had together. I truly believed that he could do anything he wanted to. I didn't think that anything could stop him. I loved him Adrienne, I loved him so much." Stephanie reached up and ran her hands over her eyes, ridding herself of the evidence of tears.
"He grew up Steph, what if he's not the same boy you remembered?"
Stephanie shrugged her shoulders, "He hasn't changed."
"How do you know that?" Adrienne leaned forward, placing her elbows on the laminate tabletop.
Stephanie shrugged again, "I can't really explain it...I just know." She shoveled more pancake into her mouth, ending the line of questioning.
Adrienne continued to watch her, a slight pang of worry began to creep up into her stomach. She wanted everything to work out for her friend, she deserved the happiness that awaited her out there, but she wasn't sure that Stephanie was looking for that joy in the right place.
As they waited for the waitress to bring them their change, Stephanie glanced over at her phone one last time, lighting up the home screen, ready to toss it into her purse. Her hand froze, and a cheesy grin slowly donned her face. "Addy, he texted me back!" She couldn't contain her excitement and her hands started to shake slightly.
Adrienne shook her head, giggling softly to herself. "Well, read it already and you better be reading it outloud."
Stephanie tapped the notification and brought up the app. The message was short, "He said, Well it surely can't be that bad for you if it's curing the ever stubborn hangover. I'd say that the food is, indeed, quite good for you. I look forward to our future sober chat. ;)." Stephanie read it over and over again, some outloud, some in her head.
Adrienne politely accepted the change that was handed to her, "Let's go Miss Twitterpated... I have some things to do today and they don't involve sitting at a sticky diner table listening to you rattle on and on."
Stephanie couldn't pull her eyes away from her phone as she blindly followed her friend out of the restaurant.
The texting become the norm over the next couple of weeks and with each message, Stephanie felt that she was one small step closer to getting back into Matthew's good graces. The communication was kept platonic and general but that didn't phase her at all. She felt like they were slowly starting to get to know one another all over again. In between the texts, she was kept busy in the studio, perfecting the song that she was recording vocals and instruments for. Since this would be her debut as a singer, she wanted to make sure that everything was up to her standards, and this time she could control all aspects. Unbeknownst to her, Adrienne had taken a sample of the finished work and submitted it to a local club that held a monthly, prestigious open mic night. One week before the event, Stephanie was headed home for the evening, waiting patiently for the elevators to ding open. The familiar sound greeted her and as she stepped into the metal box, Adrienne ducked into it with her.
"So, I have some news," Adrienne punched the first floor button and the two friends began the slow descent.
Stephanie glanced over at her.
"Next Friday, you will be performing at The Lexington's Open Mic Night."
"What??" Stephanie's mouth gaped open as she stared at her friend dumbfoundedly.
"I took the finished product of 'Learned My Lesson' and submitted it to them. They loved it and want you to be one of the feature performers for the night."
"Addy, how many times do I have to tell you, I don't perform. I write and I play but I don't sing." Stephanie stomped her small foot for emphasis with the last word.
"You keep saying that but everytime I listen to you sing and watch you, there is something so magical about it. I can't tear my eyes away from you. There is just something about you, it's so, well it's just so blasted wonderful."
Stephanie sighed, "Adrienne, I don't know."
"Come on, what will it hurt?"
"That is not the point. The point is you should have asked me first."
"If I had asked, you would have said no. Now, you have a decision to make, but remember that this opportunity doesn't come around all that often."
Stephanie stared at the metallic doors in front of her, "Fine." One word, simple and final.
Adrienne clapped her hands, "Everyone will see exactly what I see in you. Oh, I'm so excited for next week."
As the ride come a halt and the doors slid open, Stephanie ducked out quickly, knowing that if she stuck around any longer, she might be tempted to talk herself out of it. To be honest, a part of her was excited. She came to L.A. to follow her dreams and create her own adventures. Wasn't this a new undertaking, a new path blazed?